Page 21 of So Much More
“I didn’t know I had a sister,” she finally says.
“Oh,” I reply automatically, before realizing the importance of what she said. “Oh!” I slide a hand up to cradle the back of her head, drawing her closer into me. “That’s big news.”
She nods.
I say, “I don’t know much about your family, so can you tell me about them and what this means?”
eight
“My father, Jack, moved out when I was two,” I explain to Randall. “He and Mom were teenagers when she got pregnant, and they immediately got married, as people did back then. I always believed he walked out on us, because that’s what Mom told me.” I take a deep breath. “But she told me tonight that’s not what happened.”
As he waits for me to continue, he strokes my hair and leans his head against mine in the way he knows will calm me. I silently marvel at how well he knows what I need, but I realize it’s because he took the time and effort to ask and pay attention when we first started spending time together. Nobody has ever done that for me before.
I tell him the entire story, and when I finish, he asks, “How do you feel about your mom lying to you about Jack?”
“I don’t feel great, that’s for sure.”
“Do you think it was better for little-girl Wendy to believe Jack left you?”
“Maybe,” I admit. “It’s too soon for me to think rationally about what Mom did, though. Or about what Jack did, for that matter.”
“Understandably.”
We’re both silent for a minute.
“Do you want to meet Andrea?” I ask.
“I think I will at some point, but I don’t know if I’ll be ready by this weekend.”
“You don’t have to be. Don’t let her schedule determine this for you. You can meet her next month or next year or ten years from now if that’s what feels right for you.”
“That’s exactly what I needed to hear.” I rub the collar of his maroon Polo shirt between my fingers as I consider what I want to do. “I think maybe I need to talk to her on the phone first and get to know her a little before I meet her.”
“That sounds like an excellent plan. And if she doesn’t understand that, it means you’re making the right decision to not let her into your life yet.”
“Very true.”
We’re silent for a moment before he asks, “Do you want me to meet her while she’s here? I can see what she’s like and try to figure out if I think she might want something from you other than getting to know the sister she didn’t know she had.”
My chest feels like it’s going to explode from the care this man is showing me. “You’d do that for me?”
He squeezes me. “Of course I would. But you don’t have to decide right now.”
“Thank you. I’ll think about it.”
I shift so I can look him directly in the face.
“Thank you for coming over.”
“You’re welcome. I’m happy you chose me as your person to call.”
I purse my lips. “Wellllll …”
“Well, what?”
“I did talk to Leslie first. Sorry.”
Randall shakes his head. “Don’t be sorry about that. She’s your closest friend. I don’t want you to think I always need you to prioritize me over her. But did talking to her not help you?”
